A hotel in the Austrian state of Salzburg has been found guilty of discrimination after two Muslim women were denied access to the pool because they wore burkinis. According to the regional administrative court, the women were treated worse than other hotel guests because of their religion, which violates existing anti-discrimination laws.

The incident took place in the Pongau district in the autumn of 2025. When the women tried to use the hotel’s pool, they were asked to leave the area because the hotel did not allow the Muslim swimwear burkini.

The hotel management cited hygiene, that the garment was not appreciated by other guests, and that it was not considered compatible with “Austrian customs.” This is reported by the Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung.

“With a burkini, you can perhaps swim in Saudi Arabia, but not in Austria,” hotel staff reportedly told the women.

After a discussion at the hotel reception, the women were offered the option of switching hotels. The alternative stay was arranged and paid for by the hotel, but the women felt discriminated against and chose to file a complaint.

The complaint led authorities in St. Johann im Pongau to fine the hotel’s responsible manager 100 euros for discrimination. The hotel appealed the decision, but the administrative court sided with the authorities and upheld the fine.

According to the court, there were not sufficient grounds to deny the women access to the pool. Furthermore, there was no support for the claim that burkinis posed hygiene risks.

The garments are made from the same types of materials as regular swimwear, and there were no indications that water quality was affected. The court also noted that the hotel lacked written pool rules and that the ban had not been enforced consistently.

Humiliating to Be Forced to Undress

The ruling states that the women were denied access to a service the hotel offers to its guests solely because of the religiously motivated swimwear they wore. Therefore, the action was assessed as direct discrimination.

One of the women, who is a lawyer, says after the ruling that she is aware many in Austria want to see a general burkini ban but emphasizes that differential treatment is only permitted under law if it can be justified by objective reasons, for example, to prevent a concrete danger.

She also points out that people choose to cover their bodies for many different reasons – religious, cultural, medical, or personal – and describes it as humiliating to be forced to undress when there is no actual risk or harm to others.

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